Motor vehicle suspension systems may be configured to allow the vehicle wheel assembly to follow elevation changes in the road surface, by supporting the weight of the vehicle and allowing for relative vertical movement between a vehicle wheel and a vehicle during travel, essentially isolating wheel disturbances from the vehicle body. As the wheel assembly of a motor vehicle encounters road inputs, during travel, the suspension system undergoes compression strokes (jounce) and extension strokes (rebound).
Jounce bumpers are utilized to provide force and to absorb and store energy during jounce. During a high intensity impact event, such as encountering a series of potholes, a bump, or a foreign object in the roadway, the jounce bumper may be configured to contact a stop within the motor vehicle suspension and may elastically deform to provide the force of contact against the vehicle body. As elastic deformation of the jounce bumper increases, in compression, the force provided by the jounce bumper also increases to a limit, at which the bumper stops the relative movement of the wheel assembly toward the vehicle body.
It is desirable that jounce bumpers provide the lowest entry rate or stiffness possible to improve vehicle ride quality, while still maintaining a rate or stiffness with sufficient energy capabilities to combat and/or manage peak loads during a high intensity impact event.